A second seige
by Dovazhul
Summary: A story of another war waged in Skyrim, and a legionnaire who must help stop it.
1. Chapter 1

He sat on the hard wooden chair, mulling the task before him.

In the chair was a young Imperial, from Cyrodill, male and well-built. He wore a set of unadorned steel armor with a Skyforge steel war ax tethered to his hip. He was thinking about the camp he was about to clear out, as he was a bounty hunter. He killed bandits and giants whenever they became a nuisance. He was well accustomed to war and fighting, as he had aided the Imperials in the downfall of Ulfric Stormcloak several years beforehand. Several of his advisors, such as Galmar Stone-fist, had escaped. Now, to line his pockets, he became a sellsword.

He heard a knock on the door of his house, Breezehome, in Whiterun. He opened it to reveal a Kajiit in simple leather armor. The Imperial grinned and stepped aside to admit the Khajiit. "How are you?" the Khajiit asked. Sin'zah, being raised by humans, had an adequate grasp that many Khajiit lack. The Imperial, Samuel, shrugged and sighed. "The usual. I've been surveying a fort where bandits are holed up. The captain of the guard in Falkreath is offering a nice 250 septim reward for someone to clear it. They seem reasonably well stocked, so I could grab some of the armor or arms and make some more. Adrianne has been running short of iron and steel lately and I could get a good price for it. What about you?" He asked. The Kajiit's tail flicked and he said, "Well, I was hoping I could join you." For the second time that day, the Imperial's face lit with a broad smile.

Sin'Zah was left on the doorstep of Jorvaskar as a kitten, and the then companions raised him as their own. He studied for many years under the great Eorland Grey-Mane and was able to make leather armor as tough as dragon hide, and sharpen weapons to an amazing degree. He later became married to Aela a number of years ago. When Samuel moved to Whiterun, they became fast friends.

"I always value your company," Samuel said.

The next day they set out to find the bandit camp. They set up camp about a kilometer away. They had begun to set snares when they heard yells and a feline hiss. Sin'Zah dug out a spyglass out of his travel pack and looked at the old fort. They saw a series of prisoners being ferried in. one in particular caught Samuel's eye, a Khajiit female who had struck a guard and was being restrained by three other bandits. Sin'Zah bristled with anger. "Never have I had a love for bandits, but this is absolutely cruel. What could they have done?"

They continued to survey the fort when Galmar Stone-fist walked into sight. Samuel gasped. "_Him!_" Samuel said. "You remember the fall of the Stormcloaks, right? Five years ago?" Sin'Zah nodded. "Well," Samuel continued, "He escaped. But what he's doing in the company of bandits I have no idea." Samuel nodded his head to a thicket, about fifty meters from the fort. "Come on." They snuck to the thicket and surveyed the area. Sin'Zah nodded his head to the ramparts. "They have sentries, but they look bored. We could probably sneak up there, no problem." Samuel nodded and they snuck up to a wall that had collapsed and picked their way up. When they got to the top, the pair took cover behind a set of barrels. They waited for the sentry get close to them, and then they vaulted the barrels. Samuel made short work of him with his ax. Unfortunately, the sound of the arrows and armor hitting the stone drew attention to the pair, where Stone-fist spotted them. "Shoot them!" he shouted, then ran into the hold where the prisoners were held. "Cover me! I'm going to make sure he doesn't harm the prisoners."

He jumped the railing and bolted to the hold, arrows whizzing by him. He made it, and slammed the door and heard several arrows hit it. He locked it, took a deep breath, and then began to make his way down the staircase.


	2. An Ally

Samuel descended the hard staircase to the dungeons. He tried to go quietly, but it was hard with the steel boots. He managed to make it to the bottom without being detected. He saw a door with light dancing beneath the crack at the bottom. He peeked through the keyhole in the door. He saw a handful of bandits talking of the prisoners they had captured earlier. ". . . And they're supposed to be executed tomorrow. Very ceremonious." Said a burly Orc. The rest laughed and resumed chatting. That is, until Samuel slipped on a wet stone and his heavily armored form clanged to the ground. The bandits hushed immediately and rushed to the door, weapons in hand and threw open the door in time to see him stagger, cursing, to his feet. He glanced at the bandits as they stared at him. "Well, come on," he said. I thought you were supposed to be ruthless."

Two short minutes later, he walked out of the hallway, glancing back at the pile of bodies.

He scavenged food and leather armor for the light weight and continued to the dungeons. He caught a glance at a sentry making his rounds. He snuck over to the guard and tapped him on the shoulder. As the sentry turned around, boredom turning to fear and surprise as he saw the ax cleave toward him. After he nabbed the keys and the dagger and mace, along with the armor, and jogged to the cells. He found a row of prisoners who looked relatively fit. He unlocked the doors and tossed two of them weapons and armor, along with a set of keys.

"Set the rest of the prisoners free. There's a few guards upstairs. I already took care of them. Get the rest of the people situated." They tramped off to free the prisoners. "And for the love of the Divines keep it down!" he yelled after them. The Khajiit walked by him and he stopped her. She gave him a questioning look. "You stay with me. You seem important. Here," He said as he handed her a set of leather armor. "Sword, daggers, or ax?" "Daggers," she replied in the purring roll of the Khajiit. He handed her two Elvish daggers. "They were made by the finest smith I know." She spotted a broom and tried a practice swing. The broom, with very little effort, was cleaved in two.

Samuel nodded. "Let's go."

They jogged down the hallway, where sounds of fighting could be heard. They made it too the door leading to the courtyard. He threw it open and pulled the Khajiit outside. A battle was waging between the released prisoners and the remaining bandits. He saw Sin'Zah firing arrows into the bandits. "Come on! This way! We have to move!" He shouted over the fighting. "No!" The Khajiit yelled back. "I have to help the prisoners." "You know something!" Samuel shouted back. "You're too valuable. We need your information." She pulled away from him. "This one is going to fight!" "Fine!" He ran next to her. "Then I'm fighting with you!" He unsheathed his ax and charged into the fray with the Khajiit next to him.

He first hacked at a bandit who was about to kill a prisoner. He then ducked a blow from a warhammer and kicked the owner in the sternum before severing its owner in half.

The Khajiit was holding her own in combat as well. She moved with the grace of a jaguar and struck hard and fast. She left a trail of dead or wounded bandits before they knew what hit them.

Samuel saw Galmar running for a horse at the end of the fort. Samuel, Khajiit momentarily forgotten, charged through the battleground to him. Galmar saw him and spurred his horse. Samuel pulled his dagger out, perfectly weighted, and threw it. The blade missed Galmar by inches. He rode into the forest beyond his sight. He swore viciously. He spun around in time to see the last bandit struck down by Sin'Zah's arrows. He sheathed his ax and made a mental note to pick up a new dagger.

2 Days Later

Samuel walked up the steps to Dragonsreach. He had an audience with the Jarl. The Khajiit, her name now known to be Kara, had given them disturbing news. She was a spy among bandits. She was found out when she was caught trying to free the prisoners. She learned of a plot in which Galmar was recruiting bandits for a new army. He has a surprisingly staunch following group there.

Samuel opened the door. He walked into the court for his audience. The Jarl awaited him. "Samuel."He said in a commanding voice. "You were witness to Galmar's crimes. You know how ruthless he is." Samuel nodded. "He needs to be put down." "No." The Jarl said. "We need to capture him. Learn where more of his hideouts are. You said he escaped on horseback?" The last sentence was addressed to Samuel. Again, he nodded. "Well," the Jarl said, "He probably has more of these. Find him and bring him here." Samuel frowned. "That will be. . . quite a task. . . sir." He said. "I know." The Jarl said. He smiled. A humorless smile. "Now go. I am a busy man." Samuel gave a stiff bow and walked out of the court to Breezehome.

Kara was waiting for him when he arrived home. "This one appreciates the room and board you're giving her." She smiled at him. A warm, comforting smile, the polar opposite of the one the Jarl gave him. Samuel waved it away. "It's no trouble. Really. I've enjoyed your company." The last part he hadn't lied about. They had become friends after fighting together. He offered her a place in his home. He found her comforting. He also, though he found it hard to keep it from himself, found her a little sexy. She had been outfitted with leather armor from Sin'Zah. It fit her well, along with the elvish daggers.

"We have to find Galmar and bring him back here." Samuel said. "It's a pain in the ass, I know, but it's an order." Kara frowned and her ears flattened. "That is absurd. He is enslaving decent people to fight a horrible war. He needs to be put down." "My thoughts exactly." Samuel replied. He took off his helmet and rubbed his eyes. "Tomorrow I need to get new armor refitted and my ax sharpened. Anything I can do for you?" He asked. Kara gave him a small smile and shook her head. "This one appreciates your concern. But no." Samuel opened the door. "I'll get some food and water. Be back soon." Before he stepped out she laid a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and reacted with no small amount of surprise when she hugged him. He hesitated a moment, then hugged her back. "Thank you." She breathed in his ear before letting him go. He was dazed a moment before stepping out into the street.


End file.
